CM to inaugurate last stretch of Samruddhi highway on 5 June
CM to inaugurate last stretch of Samruddhi highway on 5 June 
Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis inaugurates the last and final stretch of the
76-Km of the 701-Km Nagpur-Mumbai Super Communication Expressway amid Igatpuri(Nashik) and Amane(Thane) his brainchild l,on June 5.
It will be opened to traffic on same day.
also be opened to traffic on the same day,
Reportedly, the 76-km stretch has three interchanges at Igatpuri, Kutghar in Shahapur, and Amane in Thane (Hindustan Times). The 76-km stretch was constructed at an estimated cost of ₹1,182 crore, which was jointly shared by the MSRDC and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI). It has three interchanges at Igatpuri, Kutghar in Shahapur, and Amane in Thane.
It also has a 7.8-km tunnel, the longest in the entire country.
As of now, motorists using the old Mumbai-Nashik highway need to ascend 450 metres on the Western Ghats via serpentine roads through the Kasara Ghat. The highway will slash the elevation to 160 metres and reduce the travel time between Igatpuri and Amane from 90 minutes to only 40 minutes.
Once inaugurated, the 701-km expressway will be fully operational, reducing the travel time between Nagpur and Mumbai from 16 hours to eight hours. Designed for speeds up to 150 km per hour, the ₹55,000-crore highway incorporates 33 major bridges, 274 minor bridges, 65 flyovers and six tunnels, including the longest one at Kasara Ghat. It passes through 10 districts and 390 villages.
The first phase of the expressway – from Nagpur to Shirdi – was inaugurated by PM Modi in December 2022. The second phase from Shirdi to Bharvir (Nashik) was inaugurated in May 2023 by then CM Eknath Shinde while third phase – from Bharvir to Igatpuri – was inaugurated in March 2024 by Dada Bhuse, then MSRDC minister.
It’s officially named ‘Hindu Hrudaysamrat Balasaheb Thackeray Maharashtra Samruddhi Mahamarg.
In the initial years, the project was delayed due to strong opposition against land acquisition by affected farmers.
The expressway aims to boost travel, trade and development across Maharashtra.
News Edit KV Raman
